{hand} w r i t i n g our hearts out

 

it's no secret, this girl here maintaining this blog sure  l o v e s  to write.

do not let yourselves be fooled by inferring the conclusion that she just likes to mumble

and throw her most profound, ingenious or perhaps nothing of these - thoughts 

on a piece of virtual sheet, where she can type her heart away...

No. No. This person here is in love with the  actual process of  w r i t i n g,

that is in the form of  h a n d w r i t i n g . . . 

You know, that simple thing we used to learn back to school,

these days when toddlers and children were learning

first how to form lines & curves into letters,

long before they learned anything about how to operate

smart phones, tablets, laptops, or anything technology related for that matter.

I am said to have been taught  calligraphy {what a beautiful form of art indeed! } 

from the very early days,

quite long before I entered first grade school aged 5 and a half years old.

Today, the moments I sit with a favorite journal in front of me,

warm drink by my side, as most days throughout the year living in the 

middle of Europe require, are precious.

Thoughts, plans, memories, travelling stories,

or just  w o r d s  expressing gratitude or other feelings,

are put down letter side by side, speaking of 

the preciousness of life's simple pleasures.

I've been having various favorite notebooks from time to time,

much like the one pictured above, purchased at Hema for a tiny amount,

during my few weeks stay in Amsterdam this summer.

I travel relatively often one could say averagely,

so my journals do undergo quite a few tests.

Needless to say I like to keep them in a good condition,

still however I try to take care of them,

when placed in a tote bag or a cabin sized luggage,

after just a few days, they no longer remind the item I purchased.

It bothers me. I like to keep them.

Though keeping them in a good condition is my goal.

I still do not remember exactly how I stumbled upon

R u s t i c o   l e a t h e r ' s  A l p i n e   C o l l e c t i o n 

yet, I'm really so very glad I did.

It was the beginning of summer in Germany,

yet rainy days were persisting.

As I was flipping through the collection,

I kept on holding this image in my mind:

winter would have settled,

painting white all my surroundings, as seen from our winter garden,

{much like  t h e n }

and I would hold the warm texture of felt in my hands,

dressing my new journal.

Snow would fall, the kettle would be making a hot ginger tea,

candlelights would be shining all around the space,

even throughout the day

and I would be taking a much needed break from 

computer work & or housework,

feeling the simple pleasure of holding a pen

writing my heart out on beautiful pages,

rich in texture, as if they have jumped out from the previous century.

I'm really pleased to be sharing these finds with you here today,

as Scott, the owner of Rustico leather,

has been so very kind into agreeing to send my choices all the way.

I chose three, sharing 2 of them with you today.

T h i s  traveler's journal in granite grey &  t h a t  large, composition cover in charcoal grey.

The third and my favorite one awaits at home in Germany,

to be shared with you soon.

All journals are hand made, to be exact hand sewn in the USA.

I'm in love with the details, the hand stitching, the leather, the rich feel of the paper,

their flexibility & the fact that they are quite light to carry around,

while ensuring that both exterior and interior will remain in a excellent condition.

I recently wore my above-the -knee-length, tweed trousers,

{ purchased from Mango about a good seven years ago }

and combined with chevron brown & beige tights

I loved how the whole outfit looked,

as I headed to a cafe,

mini purse, i - phone, a book & my journal being the only things

bringing with me.

S t y l i s h  and comfy may I say...

I'm particularly pleased when home accessories can be transformed / used as fashion accessories, too.

And you? Do you like that too?

... and what types of journals do you like to use?

do you still hand-write? do you love it as much?

or has technology taken over?

do share!

These notebooks have also taken part in another photo shoot, 

which includes the guest room make over I did while I stayed in Greece this summer

and I'm so very much looking forward to share it here with you!

::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::

All pictures of this post are styled & photographed by Iro - Ivy Nassopoulos for 

Domestic Stories with Ivy 2013 {all rights reserved}

A huge  t h a n k  y o u  to  R u s t i c o   L e a t h e r   for the cooperation!

Thank U f a t h e r

hello there!

I just wanted to wish:

 h a p p y f a t h e r' s  day

to all daddies of the world.

I want to thank  m i n e  for having tried to be the best father he could

through out a l l  these years

& 

say that I'm thankful that he, together with my mum,

 they brought me into this World.

wishing also to those, whose wonderful fathers are no longer physically close to them,

to find the  c o u r a g e   &   t h e   s t r e n g t h  in their hearts

to carry on armed with love & faith.

To  m o v e  o n   &  c h e r i s h   l i f e ,

cause their beloved fathers would have wanted them to do so.

As for me, I have to say that as days pass by and the time is approaching to

leave my current home,

s m i l e s  like the one above are harder and harder to put on my face & heart.

It's a normal  g r i e v i n g   p r o c e s s ,

that, I know well.

However, I'd like to take this  o n e   m o m e n t 

to express that however I've been discovering courage 

I didn't think I have,

however I realize that there are hundreds, thousands of people 

in our world who are going through tough times,

much tougher times,

I do also currently feel that what is happening is hard to deal with.

I love my home

I love my life here

&

above all I love being in a loving relations ship

with my life partner,

despite troubles,

I feel above all that we are c o n n e c t e d   d e e p l y ,

with  e s s e n c e  &  t r u e   p o t e n t i a l.

I wish that things work out for us

in the most proper & wonderful of ways.

Have beautiful Sundays,

e n j o y  with your  f a m i l i e s!

an ode to o p e n i n g d o o r s

l i s t e n

for this week's  I n s p i r a t i o n   F r i d a y,

a little ode to  o p e n i n g   d o o r s

an ode to  m e n,

as they seem often to be overshadowed by women

an ode to men who need their space to  g r o w 

to  u n d e r s t a n d  who they are

to

be  k i n g s  for at least one day

to enjoy their  f a t h e r h o o d 

{mark your calendars:  f a t h e r ' s   d a y  this Sunday the 16th of June 2013}

&

to finally feel at ease & secure when  f a l l i n g   i n   l o v e

. . . . . . . . . . . 

wishing you all a wonderful weekend ahead

I'm getting prepared for a l l   p o s s i b l e   d i r e c t i o n s

feeling that the  w o r l d   i s   m y   O y s t e r,

knowing that  m y  f a m i l y  is ready to have me stay with them,

should I currently find no other solution,

should I decide that spending some  t i m e  with them

is what my heart now desires more,

while also ready to support my  a n y  o t h e r  c h o i c e,

so long as they know that I'm  d e v o t e d   to following my g u t { & my heart }

acting on  l i v i n g   i n   m y   d r e a m s

 day by day

. . . . . . . . . . .

Armed with endless  l o v e  in my heart

fresh  i d e a s  to become  m a t e r i a l i z e d 

c o u r a g e  to leave my comfort zone

&

embrace the  n e w 

while keeping the  v a l u e s  that life has shown me to be always

my best, wisest & most profitable  c o m p a n i o n s

I love you all forever & feel loved back

p.s: open the you tube  in another window & keep on listening... it' magnificent to the very end

. . . . . . . . . . . . .

c o l l a g e  c u r a t i o n : Iro - Ivy Nassopoulos for Domestic Stories with Ivy 2013

i m a g e   c r e d i t s :

left - middle - top right - bottom right - porsche - arrow - king for a day

M o n d a y ' s S t y l i n g T i p : navy blue & powder pink

  2nd Monday of the 2nd half of the year 2013...

and it couldn't be a better time to 

officially  e s t a b l i s h  a new column

here:

W E L C O M E 

everyone to M o n d a y' s  S t y l i n g  T i p s

by yours truly 

{ insert big smile here }

A little about the  c o l u m n :

I hope to inspire you while sharing these posts here with you,

not only to  d r e s s  stylishly

but most of all to get to  k n o w  yourselves,

a c c e p t  &  l o v e  them

for all the  w o n d e r f u l people that you are

S t y l e  cannot be imposed,

neither bought.

However a  s t y l i s t can be assigned & hired to work for others.

Personally I have noticed that my love for styling has been evolving parallel

to  d i s c o v e r i n g  myself,

parallel to allowing the best of me to unfold,

while having face to face talks with those nasty sides of me.

No matter what kind of outfit,

I like to feel that the clothes are at the same time 

a means to express myself and current mood,

while being  p r o p e r l y  dressed for any occasion.

T o d a y ' s   o u f i t  is about attending an appointment with clients,

while providing my services as

their interior design consultant.

I needed  to be comfortable as driving 100 km back and forth was involved.

At the same time,

I wished to be looking simple, still taken care off.

The meeting was about seeing   e x h i b i t i o n   h o u s e s 

at Bien Zenker, a company I'm so glad to have had the chance to be familiar with.

Here's some  i n f o  about the outfit,

in case you need to note down:

Have fun  e x p l o r i n g!

-> all cotton jeans Mango,  found here 

{mine were bought during this winter sales, when more "real" sizes were available.

I paid €15 for my pair. Reduced from €39.95, I was & still am pretty happy}

->  white, all cotton T-shirt, Zara {from our latest trip this April in South Portugal, Algavre }

-> dark blue mini cardigan with pretty buttons & a cute, tiny bow detail

Mango { currently not available }

-> glossy belt with a bow from Promod { here is something similar currently available}

-> My shoes were these wild leather ballerinas in powder pink from h&m

{ one of the presents I gave myself for my birthday in March  :)}

-> my bag can be seen below {please note I'm wearing a different blouse in that shot}

& a similar can be found here

{ another purchase while in South Portugal in April}

N O T E 

This post is  n o t sponsored by any of the shops mentioned.

I currently share, post & write about all I l o v e.

However, I' m in fact glad, to be involved in some kind of cooperation,

 should they be interested.

Since it has been proven that currently bloggers & blogs

 drive lovely people like you { and potential customers for them }

in their businesses,

I find it fair & wonderful to profit from it, too.

O u i ? Mais bien sur oui!

beautiful b i r t h s & s u c c e s s prerequisites

hello my dear readers!

popping in just for a little short while

to say  h e l l o  &  verify I'm doing well.

Yes, indeed, reading comments here & feeling action & interaction from your sides

supports  w o n d e r f u l l y  my own efforts

to face the challenging situation 

of having for now to leave the man + home + life that I love

{ I must always keep in my mind and heart my own words, 

which rushed out of me

in  t h i s  post }

Since my l a s t  post here, lots of parts of me are getting changed,

r e a d j u s t e d , g r o w i n g , l e t t i n g   b e   g o n  e 

or however one may call it...

the fact is: 

  I'm c h a n g i n g.

{ towards the person I  w i s h e d  to be }

The most  m e n t i o n - w o r t h y  changes taking place are:

-> having successfully  f a c e d   m y   f e a r s 

-> having managed to  t a m e   moments when  p a n i c  stroke

-> learning to  g o   w i t h   t h e   f l ow , while choosing & planning my life

-> being  i m m e n s e l y   g r a t e f u l  for life's pleasures and opportunities,

-> enjoying to the fullest extend even the  t i n i e s t  of them

-> having  o p e n e d   m y   h e a r t  to people

-> while  a c c e p t i n g  the doors that close

&

-> after careful thought & emotion examination,

-> having also gained a newly based  t r u s t  in myself.

I'm taking some time, 

developing my  L i f e  S o u p  R e c i p e,

while ensuring that it's gonna be delicious.

So, while being busy learning in the lab of Life,

I'm sharing with you some t h o u g h t s  +  r e a l i z a t i o n s

that stroke yesterday as I was updating my Facebook's page cover:

Keep well - stay focused - allow yourselves to fall

cause falling & failing is part of life,

most possibly a necessary & valuable prerequisite 

for the successful & blissful life,

we wish to  h a v e ,  l i v e  &  s h o u l d   d e s e r v e 

Aujourd' hui j'aime...

Bonsoir mes amis,

 hello my friends & a wonderful new week to you!

 was the weekend a good one?

 nothing to complain about here & lots of beautiful moments, apart from a little

 emotional turmoil caused - quite probably - by the full moon,

 resulting in some temporary family tension.

 oh, aren't our closest ones those to receive it all first? both the good & the bad? 

 and vice versa of course...

 how about you?

 are you affected in any way by nature' s cycles?

all right, enough of small talk,

 let's get down to serious talking cause there are things I wish to share with you.

So...

 my love for French & natural inclination to speak this language is intensifying these days

& didn't hesitate to create a new series for the blog under the name:

Aujourd'hui j'aime...

{Today I love... }

several times so far some of my instant choices shared here were filed under... well... {instant choices}.

Nothing wrong with that, other than the fact that simply something wasn't there name wise...

 if you know what I mean...?

Concerning blogs & anything creative,

I appreciate everything & everyone that evolves naturally & step by step.

Originality & honesty are also appreciated. A lot.

Actions or posts brought forward in order to impress others,

rather easily put my away...

Naturally, this blog & myself are gradual and constant developers as well,

remaining always faithful to what is important to us,

to what characterizes us.

{Aujourd' hui j'aime...}

is a collection of pictures that inspire me and create a visual story for me.

much like the {moodboards}, I'm also loving to make.

Not necessarily from one artist, or one art, but a combination of them.

As much as it is created instantly, its effect is permanent.

Its images mark me & stay with me for a rather long, long time

Interior design

Decoration

Fashion

Styling

Photography &

pretty things

have always been inspiring me... after all who doesn't get inspired by them?

 in my strong effort to avoid repeating other blogs

and keep an honest & personal approach in this blog,

lots of my choices were kept for a long time private.

In the meantime, and thank's to Pinterest as well,  where everyone can simply have access to each member's  taste, I feel that my presence here is distinct enough & has an aroma,

a sound, a feeling of its own.

For the fact that I feel this way, I need to thank SO many of you,

that should I start, I have to be very careful and remember to include all of you in the list!

I'll skip this part for now

 & just go back to {aujourd'hui j'aime...}

I love visual stories and about 2 years ago, I had started writing stories under the collages {such as here & there} I was creating with my favorite pictures from friends & contacts in {flickr}.

I think {this} must have been the fisrt one.

In the meantime, it has become clear that

favorite styling both in interiors & fashion,

as much as stunning photography and breathtaking details

simply fire my brain cells,

while pleasing my eyes.

It's not only that though. 

It doesn't stop in the "visualization" & dreaming level.

The images that inspire me are actually kindly invading my life, the way I decorate our living space, the choices I make,

the way I dress and style myself,

the way I think & behave,

 and of course the way I work with others.

So darling people, allow me to be opening a window to my mind, heart & soul to you

through my choices, mostly grouped in my Pinterest boards and likes.

You must be a little familiar with that through the

{etsy treasuries} also curated by me.

Today's inspiration is all about secretary style,

intellectualism,

espressos,

truffles,

geometry,

wood & metal.

Enjoy & c u soon!

.........................................................

oh! not to forget:

 this feature is not bound in any way to be daily, weekly, bimonthly or anything similar.

Due to the spontaneity of my nature, it can be once a day, a few times a week or simply taking a rest for a while. Sometimes, it might even be more frequent that once a day.

 Each post is going to be mainly recognized by the date that it is posted under the label:

{Aujourd'hui j'aime...}

Merci!

... and oh! #2, if you wish to read a bit on maximasing space in an open air loft

and see how I managed to do so in our previous home,

here' s my latest entry for Ikea Family Live.

Thank's so much for your comments, 

being here & following me around the web

 in every possible {nice} way you can!

xxx :*)

[via]

collage crated by Iro - Ivy Nassopoulos for Domestic Stories with Ivy combining the following images clockwise: 1. 2. 3. 4.